Filing bankruptcy in Woodland Hills

Bankruptcy is a fairly common practice that millions of people go through each and every year. With the help of a lawyer or a practiced legal hand you can get through your bankruptcy easily and you can come out on the other side with renewed hope and a clean slate. The process is rather complicated, but with the right steps and better understanding, anyone can do it.

How Do I File Bankruptcy in Woodland Hills?

Filing in a specific location makes a difference for a few reasons. First, if you are filing in an area where there are specific laws about what you can default on, what sort of debt you can claim or what the amount of debt you can claim is, this can all impact your filing. In California for example there is a cap on how much property the person filing can keep depending on family size when they do file bankruptcy.

To file you must first fill out your paperwork and cerate a case so that if there is anyone that is opposed to the filing, they have a chance to come forward and state their own case. You must also fill out the appropriate paperwork, you need to take the relevant courses to help you figure out your finances and think about next steps, and then you file and wait for your creditors to come forward if they want to in order to challenge the bankruptcy. All in all, the process takes about three months from start to finish.

Can I File Bankruptcy Without Going to Court in Woodland Hills?

In most cases you do have to show up for court at least once, sometimes twice. This is to make sure that if there is a creditor that wants to fight your filing, they have a scheduled time and a place where they can show up and fight the bankruptcy. This also allows the judge and your lawyers to file the necessary legal paperwork to make your bankruptcy legal and binding and to create a court record of the proceedings. Bankruptcy court is not super involved and only takes a matter of a few minutes to resolve if there is no pushback against the ruling.

How Much Cash Can You keep When Filing Chapter 7 in Woodland Hills?

When filing chapter 7 bankruptcy you are allowed to keep some cash on hand to be able to live and to be able to start the recovery process from your bankruptcy. You can keep around $25,000 in cash in your bank account during bankruptcy and immediately following and you can keep assets as well. If you have a family and you have more than one person living with you, you are obviously going to be able to keep a larger house than you would if you were a single person.

The purpose of this is to make sure that you are not stockpiling money to use after the bankruptcy to buy things that are not necessary to your life and survival. In California you can keep a home worth up to $600,000 in some cases and you can reaffirm your debt regarding those homes if you want to.

Can I Keep My Car If I file Chapter 7 in Woodland Hills?

In most cases, yes. If you have a car that is worth millions of dollars, odds are that car is going to have to be sold to try and recoup some of the money you owe. You can keep a car however so that you can get around and so that you can continue living life. There is a $3,525 exemption for vehicles in California so if your car does not exceed that amount by a great deal, you are most likely going to be able to keep it. If your car far out paces that amount your trustee may require that it be sold and that you purchase a car that is of lesser value to try and recoup some of the cost of the bankruptcy and some of the money that you owe.

Taking the time to speak with a lawyer and to determine what the value of your car is prior to filing for bankruptcy can help you to get the right overall information and to determine if you are going to be able to keep your car.

Why Berneman Law Firm?

At Berneman Law Firm we have the experience, the expertise and the compassion that you need while filing for bankruptcy so that you can get your case heard, handled and out of the way. We have a team that is going to stay with you through the entire process and help explain each step so that you are not blindsided by what is going on and so that you can be prepared for each step of your case.

We work with hundreds of people every year on their bankruptcy cases and we can help you get the outcome you need and can help offer the understanding and support that you need through the difficult process of filing for bankruptcy. It is not simple and it is by no means something that you can do on your own. We want to help you and we want to help you feel comfortable during the filing process as well as be well informed so that you can know what is going on and where your case stands.

Contact us at Berneman Law Firm today at 877-620-0044 to set up a consultation and to talk about what options you have when it comes to filing bankruptcy in Woodland Hills in California state and what the process is going to include form start to finish. Bankruptcy does not have to be crippling, we can help.